Summer School on Migrant Health in Eastern Europe and Central Asia

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The work of EHPV and Baltic HUB were presented as best practices during “Summer School on Migrant Health in Eastern Europe and Central Asia”.

We had the incredible opportunity to participate in the “Summer School on Migrant Health in Eastern Europe and Central Asia” held in Yerevan, Armenia on August 21-22, 2023. This event, organized by Regional Expert Group on Migration and Health (REG) was aimed to delve into demographic and sociological research methods, focusing on assessing the health needs of displaced individuals, migrants, and refugees in the EECA region, as well as on discussing the best practices and the package of services for Migrants in EECA.

We had the privilege to present our work during session focusing on “Best Practices for Serving Key Groups Among Migrants and Refugees.” The project Manager of EHPV – Armen Aghajanov showcased the remarkable work of BALTIC HUB and EHPV in supporting refugees from Ukraine, especially those from the HIV+ and LGBT communities.
BALTIC HUB is a regional coordination center that unites HIV and LGBT organizations in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Finland. Their services include access to medicines, social support, health insurance consultation, psychological aid, and more. They’re expanding to include Norway, Poland, and Ukraine.

We are immensely grateful for this opportunity to present such a transformative initiative. The Summer School showcased the power of collaboration and innovation in addressing healthcare challenges among migrants. Let’s continue working together for a healthier and more inclusive future! 💪

#MigrantHealth #BALTICHUB #SummerSchool2023 #HealthcareForAll

CONGRATULATIONS ON THE DAY OF RESTORATION OF INDEPENDENCE OF Estonia!

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CONGRATULATIONS ON THE DAY OF RESTORATION OF INDEPENDENCE OF Estonia! #ehpv #ehpv18 #Elagu Eesti!

 

HIV statistics

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2023. As of 16 August, 99 people have been diagnosed with HIV in Estonia.

Over the years, 10,681 people have been diagnosed with HIV in Estonia.

https://www.terviseamet.ee/et/nakkushaigused-menuu/tervishoiutootajale/nakkushaigustesse-haigestumine/hiv-ja-aids

World Hepatitis Day 2023 ‘We’re not waiting’

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Hepatitis B and C cause significantly higher cancer risk than smoking a daily pack of cigarettes
• World Hepatitis Day 2023 launches today with the urgent call to action ‘We’re not waiting’
• Nearly half (42%) of people globally are not aware that one of the leading
causes of liver cancer is viral hepatitis

Today, World Hepatitis Day (WHD) launches with the call to action ‘We’re not waiting.
A recent survey from WHA found that nearly half (42%) of people globally are unaware that one of the leading causes of liver cancer is viral hepatitis. Nearly three quarters (74%) of those surveyed say knowing hepatitis causes liver cancer means they are more likely to get tested and over four fifths (82%) say they are more likely to get vaccinated.
Globally, over 350 million people live with hepatitis B or C3, causing more than 1.1 million lives to be lost each year4. By 2040, deaths from viral hepatitis are expected to exceed mortality from HIV, malaria, and tuberculosis combined5.
Every year, more than a million lives are lost to hepatitis. The theme of World Hepatitis Day 2023 is ‘We’re not waiting’.
A new report from CDA Foundation finds that individuals living with hepatitis B
and C have a significantly higher risk of developing cancer than someone
smoking one pack of cigarettes per day1
New research presented at the EASL Congress by the Center for Disease Analysis (CDA)
Foundation1 found that hepatitis B (HBV) and C (HCV) viruses are highly oncogenic leading
to cancers in multiple organs and sites. The report finds that hepatitis B and C infected
individuals “have a similar or significantly higher risk of developing cancer than someone
who actively smokes one pack of cigarettes per day.” It concludes that HBV and HCV should
be “considered as cancer causing infections and international guidelines should be
reconsidered accordingly.”
It’s a call to accelerate elimination efforts of viral hepatitis now
and the urgent need for testing and treatment for the real people who need it. Individuals
and communities around the world are making change happen in their own lives and in world
around them. We celebrate them, while demanding more action.
change – we’re fighting to make it happen.”
“Hepatitis B and C infections are silent epidemics. These viral infections are cancer causing but since infected individuals don’t show any symptoms until it is too late, most infections go unnoticed. It is important for all of us to recognize the high risk of cancer associated with hepatitis B and C infection and get patients linked to care. Treatment can reduce the risk of cancer by 85% or more.”
We’re not waiting for
Get involved
World Hepatitis Alliance (WHA) have produced a range of multi-channel campaign resources that you can use to raise awareness in your communities and online. Download the campaign guidelines for more information on the visual identity, digital resources (also below in the ‘Digital assets’ section) and activations to get involved.
Download the campaign guidelines here.
Download the communications toolkit here.
For more information contact:
tajinder.tiwana@worldhepatitisalliance.org
Notes to editors:
About Viral Hepatitis
Viral hepatitis is inflammation of the liver caused by a virus. WHO say that the total deaths cause by viral hepatitis, including acute cases, cirrhosis and liver cancer account for 1.1 million deaths globally in 2019. There are five different hepatitis viruses – hepatitis A, B, C, D and E. Hepatitis A and E is spread mainly through ingestion of contaminated food and water and the disease is often endemic in countries with a lack of safe water and poor sanitation, but rarely becomes chronic. Hepatitis B is transmitted through contact with the blood or other bodily fluids of an infected person and approximately 296 million people are living with chronic infections. Hepatitis C is mainly spread through blood-to-blood contact such as unsafe injection practices and inadequate sterilisation of medical equipment. Today, 58 million people are living with the disease. Hepatitis D is passed on through contact with infected blood and only occurs in people who are already infected with hepatitis B.
In total over 350 million people in the world are living with viral hepatitis. Each year over a million people lose their lives because of conditions related to acute hepatitis and chronic infection that cause liver cancer and cirrhosis. Chronic hepatitis B and C infections are the leading cause of liver cancer
Despite there being a vaccine and effective treatment for hepatitis B and a cure for hepatitis C – few countries in the world are on track to achieve the WHO target of eliminating viral hepatitis by 2030 (Polaris Observatory – CDA Foundation).
About World Hepatitis Day
Held on July 28 each year, WHD is our day to raise awareness of viral hepatitis. On this day we aim to unite the global community to demand action from decision makers globally to prioritise the elimination of viral hepatitis. Across the world, campaign supporters will raise their voices on social media, hold webinars, speak to the media and hold events to spread the message and raise awareness of hepatitis.
WHD is one of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) officially mandated global public health days. It is a day when the world comes together to raise awareness of hepatitis, one of the most deadly and neglected diseases and health crises – one that is claiming a life every 30 seconds. Globally, 354 million people live with hepatitis, with more than 1.1 million lives lost each year to hepatitis B and hepatitis C. Yet, we have the tools to eliminate the disease by 2030.
Alongside this, WHD will also highlight the social injustice and inequity caused by the current lack of action on hepatitis elimination and focus on the positive action needed to get on track to meet our 2030 elimination goals.

Every year, more than a million lives are lost to hepatitis.

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Every year, more than a million lives are lost to hepatitis. We’re not waiting for change – we’re fighting to make it happen.

* People living with viral hepatitis unaware can’t wait for testing
* People living with hepatitis can’t wait for life saving treatments
* Expectant mothers can’t wait for hepatitis screening and treatment
* Newborn babies can’t wait for birth dose vaccination
* People affected by hepatitis can’t wait to end stigma and discrimination
* Community organisations can’t wait for greater investment
* Decision makers can’t wait and must act now to make hepatitis elimination a reality through political will and funding.

We’re not waiting

‘We’re not waiting’ is call to action for WHD 2023. It’s a call to accelerate elimination efforts of viral hepatitis now and the urgent need for testing and treatment for the real people who need it. Individuals and communities around the world are making change happen in their own lives and in world around them. We celebrate them, while demanding more action.

Soon we will open an EHPV office in Tartu

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Dear friends, we have good news for you! Soon we will open an EHPV office in Tartu, where you can have rapid HIV/HCV/syphilis tests. For more information, please follow us! 😉 In the meantime, you can visit www.ehpv.ee

The Elton John AIDS Foundation and the Estonian Network of People Living with HIV have joined forces

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The Elton John AIDS Foundation and the Estonian Network of People Living with HIV have joined forces to strengthen the position of people living with HIV. Over the next two years, significant work is planned in the areas of awareness, prevention, combating stigma and discrimination, as well as ensuring access to quality services and support for the community.

https://ehpv.ee/projects/?lang=en

New report from UNAIDS

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PRESS RELEASE

New report from UNAIDS shows that AIDS can be ended by 2030 and outlines the path to get there

GENEVA, 13 July 2023—A new report released today by UNAIDS shows that there is a clear path that ends AIDS. This path will also help prepare for and tackle future pandemics and advance progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The report, ‘The Path that Ends AIDS’, contains data and case studies which highlight that ending AIDS is a political and financial choice, and that the countries and leaders who are already following the path are achieving extraordinary results.

https://unaids.org/en/resources/presscentre/pressreleaseandstatementarchive/2023/july/unaids-global-aids-update

Read more

Seminar: “Building Community through Art and Stories: Community-Building for participants identifying as HIV+ and LGBT+”

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Seminar: “Building Community through Art and Stories: Community-Building for participants identifying as HIV+ and LGBT+”

JEF Estonia and the Estonian Network of People Living with HIV organized a joint seminar titled “Building Community through Art and Stories: Community-Building for participants identifying as HIV+ and LGBT+.” The seminar aimed to expand the opportunities for participants from the HIV+ and LGBT+ communities. During the seminar, participants shared their experiences, personal stories, challenges, and their vision for the future of the HIV+ and LGBT+ communities.

As part of the seminar, a lecture on HIV infection was presented, covering basic and vital aspects, the importance of prevention and treatment, as well as where and how to undergo HIV testing in Estonia. The entire event was conducted interactively, allowing each participant to ask questions or share their personal stories at any time.

Participants actively engaged in the “Identity Collage” activity, where they expressed what defines them as individuals through creativity: their origins, hobbies, worldviews, problems, and more. Observing the participants’ reactions to the identity collages was fascinating, as it clearly showed the delicate thread that we are all different yet simultaneously the same.

The next activity, the “Human Library,” allowed seminar participants to hear three stories related to joys and challenges within the HIV+ and LGBT+ communities. The speakers freely shared their life journeys and how they overcame obstacles. The speakers’ stories shed light on many issues that exist in today’s HIV+ and LGBT+ communities, including stigma, discrimination, and violations of basic human rights.

The “Art Therapy Seminar: Embracing Our Stories” had a special impact on the participants as it contributed to the maintenance and improvement of mental well-being. The essence of the seminar was that each participant could learn meditation and various art therapy techniques to find inner balance and harmony within themselves, without relying on external assistance in the future.

The concluding stage was a panel discussion with Lachin Aliyev, the founder of the Estonian Network of People Living with HIV. Participants had the opportunity to freely ask questions regarding the history of HIV infection in Estonia and worldwide, the problems that need to be addressed, and what needs to be done first and foremost: respecting others and accepting people as they are.

“Hello bar” ja EHPV partnership

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We have fantastic news for guests of “Hello Bar” and all community members! We are delighted to announce our new partnership with the Estonian Network of People Living with HIV.

As a result of this collaboration, the Estonian network is providing us with free condoms and lubricants. Now we have free access to reliable protection and safety. We value the health and well-being of our community.

Additionally, the Estonian Network of People Living with HIV invites you to their office to receive free rapid tests for HIV, Hepatitis C and Syphilis. This is an important step for our health and well-being. Here, we can not only get tested but also receive professional support and counseling.

We invite every member of our club to take advantage of this unique offer. Come to our club to get free condoms and lubricants. And dont forget about the opportunity to take medical tests at the Estonian Networks office.

We thank the Estonian Network of People Living with HIV for their support. Together, we can take care of our health and create a safe and friendly environment for everyone.

Instagram: hellobartln                     Website and Instagram: ehpv.ee